Science Vs27 Apr 2023

Ketamine: How Special is Special K?

For years, ketamine has been thought of mostly as a horse tranquilizer — or a street drug that puts you in a scary-sounding K-hole. But now, we’re hearing reports that it could be almost a miracle medicine, treating stubborn depression and other mental illnesses. So how good is it, really? And could using a drug like this for depression actually be dangerous? We talk to researchers Dr. Rebecca Price, Prof. Colleen Loo, and Prof. Gerard Sanacora – and Fernanda Graciolli. UPDATE 4/28/23: A previous version of this episode incorrectly described Dr. Rebecca Price’s role in a 2009 study of ketamine’s effect on depression and suicidal thoughts, back when she was a graduate student. The episode has been updated accordingly. This episode does deal with depression and suicidal thoughts. Here are some crisis hotlines: United States: US National Suicide Prevention Lifeline 1-800-273-TALK (2755) (Online chat available); US Crisis Text Line Text “GO” to 741741 Australia: Lifeline 13 11 14 (Online chat available) Canada: Canadian Association for Suicide Prevention (See link for phone numbers listed by province) United Kingdom: Samaritans 116 123 (UK and ROI) Full list of international hotlines here Find our transcript here: https://bit.ly/ScienceVsKetamine In this episode, we cover: (00:00) Intro: Ketamine - a new wonder drug? (05:47) Chapter One: Ketamine and depression (10:37) Chapter Two: What does ketamine do in the brain? (15:04) Chapter Three: But ketamine doesn’t help everyone … (20:17) Chapter Four: The risks of using ketamine (24:30) Chapter Five: Ketamine and addiction (25:54) Chapter Six: Overall — what should we make of ketamine? This episode was produced by Michelle Dang,Wendy Zukerman, R.E. Natowicz, Joel Werner, Rose Rimler, and Meryl Horn. We’re edited by Blythe Terrell. Gimlet’s managing director is Nicole Beemsterboer. Fact checking by Erica Akiko Howard. Mix and sound design by Catherine Anderson. Music written by Bobby Lord, Peter Leonard, Bumi Hidaka, So Wiley, and Emma Munger. Thank you to researchers Prof. Bita Moghaddam and Grace Forsyth. Special thanks to Flora Lichtman, Jorge Just, the Zukerman Family and Joseph Lavelle Wilson. Science Vs is a Spotify Original Podcast and a Gimlet production. Follow Science Vs on Spotify, and if you want to get notifications every time we put out a new episode, tap the bell icon in your app. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Denne episoden er hentet fra en åpen RSS-feed og er ikke publisert av Podme. Den kan derfor inneholde annonser.

Episoder(349)

Fiber Maxxing and Poo Maxxing, with Dr. Trisha Pasricha

Have you been puzzled by your poos or felt down about your dumps?? You’re not alone! So many of us are struggling with gut issues, which is why fiber is having a major moment. But even though we’re se...

15 Okt 59min

Collagen Peptides: Should You Take Them?

Collagen peptides!! Can they make you look younger and be healthier? It feels like everyone wants to be bursting with collagen, and apparently the way to do it is by scooping up that white powder of c...

8 Okt 35min

Why We Never Forget Our Teen Years, with Dr. Lisa Damour

Our brains go completely WILD when we go through our teenage years. It’s a time where it feels like every disagreement with our parents turns into World War III, and every idea that could get us kille...

1 Okt 58min

Stress: The Science of Chilling Out

Stress! We’re all feeling it. And besides just feeling crappy, we’re also told that stress can wreak havoc on our bodies. The internet has a million solutions: vagus nerve stimulators, deep breaths, o...

24 Sep 40min

Could AI Really Kill Us All?

Could artificial intelligence really wipe out humanity? Claims that AI poses an existential threat are going gangbusters. AI agents from OpenAI recently hacked into another company, Hugging Face, whic...

17 Sep 44min

Where Have The Insects Gone?? With Dr. Jessica Ware

Bugs are disappearing at alarming rates, scientists are telling us. Bees, butterflies, beetles: all of them have been dropping like flies. And scientists say there are a bunch of reasons to care about...

10 Sep 45min

Protein-Maxxing: Is It Actually Bad For Us?

Protein is everywhere — tons of us are trying to cram more of it into our diets, and it's showing up in our lattes, our snack bars, even our popcorn. But just as we’re getting on board with protein-ma...

3 Sep 31min

Sunscreen: Could It Be Toxic??

Sunscreen is supposed to protect us from dangerous stuff like cancer, but all over social media, people are saying that we’ve been getting it all wrong. We’re being told that our sunscreen is full of ...

27 Aug 50min